EU wheat slips to new lows as supply pressure persists

PARIS/HAMBURG, Sept 2 (Reuters) - European wheat futures hit fresh contract lows on Tuesday as rising expectations for global supply raised the prospect of stiff export competition.

A sharp fall for Chicago wheat, which resumed trading after Monday's U.S. holiday closure, also pressured European prices.

December milling wheat BL2Z5, the most-active position on Paris-based Euronext, settled 0.9% down at 190.00 euros ($222.43) per metric ton, the latest in a series of contract lows and an 18-month low for a second-month price BL2c2.

A fall in the euro EUR= against the dollar and chart support at 190 euros helped underpin Euronext, traders said.

Chicago wheat Wv1 dropped nearly 2% as the market was further pressured by a rebound in the dollar index. GRA/

A further decline in Russian export prices last week, amid accelerating arrivals of the new crop, coupled with rising estimates for Russian exports have weighed on sentiment.

“Russian prices are weakening, which is bearish, but the fall is not dramatic,” one German trader said, noting Russian farmers remained reluctant sellers.

Russian 12.5% protein September wheat was around $230-$232 a ton FOB on Tuesday. Russian 11.5% protein wheat was around $226 to $228 a ton FOB, with prices often about $2 cheaper than the French crop depending on Euronext and exchange rates.

International demand remained tepid, with buyers awaiting sharper declines in Russian prices, though a wheat tender announced by Tunisia for Wednesday raised the prospect of fresh activity. GRA/TEND

A sharp upward revision to the official 2025/26 wheat harvest forecast in Australia has added to supply pressure after large Northern Hemisphere harvests.

European Union soft wheat exports in the first two months of the 2025/26 season were down 44% from a year earlier, though the decline was amplified by an ongoing absence of figures for top EU producer France, European Commission data showed on Tuesday.

In Germany, farmers were unwilling wheat sellers with current prices considered unattractive, traders said.

“German farmers currently prefer to sell rapeseed and are putting a lot of new crop milling and feed wheat into storage,” another trader said.

“There are importer inquiries about German wheat from buyers such as Morocco and West Africa, but the lack of sales offers makes it too difficult to respond.”

In France, more rain on Tuesday again boosted soil moisture ahead of the wheat sowing campaign.

($1 = 0.8542 euros)